Make an IEEE reference.

Search by title, paste a link, DOI or ISBN, or fill in a short form. You get the numbered reference and the bracketed citation, as the IEEE Reference Guide sets them out.

Free. No ads. No sign-up.

Several at once? Paste one per line.

Check each citation against your instructor’s rules before you hand it in.

On this page
  1. How IEEE numbering works
  2. An IEEE reference, piece by piece
  3. Real IEEE references from the generator
  4. Citing in the text
  5. The References list
  6. No ads
  7. Questions

Updated

How IEEE numbering works

IEEE replaces names and years in your text with numbers in square brackets. The first source you cite is [1], the next new one is [2], and a source keeps its number every time you cite it again. The reference list at the end is in that number order, not alphabetical.

The generator numbers your list in the order you add sources, so add them in the order they first appear in your paper. If you cite a new source earlier than planned, move it with Up and Down beside each entry and every number after it changes to match.

An IEEE reference, piece by piece

[n]
The number from your text, in square brackets, at the start of the entry.
Authors
Initials first: M. Walker, S. D. Hershner. Up to six are named, with “and” before the last; seven or more give the first author and et al.
Title
An article, chapter or web page in quotation marks; a book, a journal or a video in italics.
Source and date
For a journal: its abbreviated name, vol., no., pp., and the month and year, then doi: and the number. For a book: the publisher and year. For anything online: Accessed: the date, then [Online]. Available: and the URL, with no full stop after it.

Real IEEE references from the generator

Journal article, from its DOI

[1] S. D. Hershner and R. D. Chervin, “Causes and consequences of sleepiness among college students,” Nat. Sci. Sleep, vol. 6, pp. 73–84, Jun. 2014, doi: 10.2147/NSS.S62907.

Book, from its ISBN

[2] M. Walker, Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams. Scribner, 2017.

Web page, from its link

[3] M. Bernstein. “10 Tips on Writing the Living Web.” A List Apart. Accessed: Nov. 3, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://alistapart.com/article/writeliving/

In the text, quoting page 112 of the book

[2, p. 112]

IEEE writes journal names in their standard abbreviations, here Nat. Sci. Sleep for Nature and Science of Sleep. A lookup brings the journal’s full name and the generator prints the Journal field as it stands, so type the abbreviation in if your instructor asks for it.

Citing in the text

  • The bracket sits inside your sentence, before the punctuation: Sleep loss lowers grades [1].
  • The number can stand in for the source as a noun: In [2], Walker argues that... Naming the author is optional.
  • Several sources at once: [1], [3], or a run of three or more as [2]–[5].
  • A page or other location goes inside the bracket: [2, p. 112]. Type it beside the in-text citation and the generator writes it that way.

The References list

The list is titled References and runs in number order, each entry starting with its bracketed number in a column at the left. IEEE uses no hanging indent: the numbers do that job.

Copy all gives the list in your order, Download .docx makes a References page, and Export writes BibTeX for LaTeX. In the Format app, IEEE is part of Pro; here it is free for everyone. More examples are in the IEEE guides.

No ads. No sign-up. Your list stays in your browser.

You are writing your own paper, and the tool that formats your sources should not compete with it for your attention. So there are no ads here, nothing to sign up for, and your lists are kept in this browser instead of on our server.

The generator is paid for by the Format app, which some students choose to pay for, not by ads.

Questions

Why are my references not in alphabetical order?

IEEE lists sources in the order you first cite them, so [1] is the first source in your paper. Reorder the list with Up and Down if it does not match your text.

Should I abbreviate journal names?

IEEE asks for standard abbreviations, such as IEEE Trans. Softw. Eng. Look the journal up in the IEEE abbreviation list or on the journal’s site, and type the short form in the Journal field.

Can I use the references in LaTeX?

Yes. Export your list as BibTeX and cite each key with \cite{} under the IEEEtran style, which numbers and formats the references itself.

Is the citation generator free?

Yes, every style, with no account and no limit on citations you type in. Looking up a link, DOI or ISBN is free too; a network that looks up a lot in a short time is asked for a quick human check.

Where are my citations kept?

In this browser only, in as many named lists as you like, until you clear or delete them. What you search for or look up goes to Format’s server, which asks Crossref, Open Library or the page itself. Nothing about you goes with it.

Are there ads?

No. The generator shows no ads and needs no sign-up. Your lists are kept in this browser, not on our server, and what you look up is used only to find the source.